78 LS1 TA build
04-23-2013 | 10:22 PM
#1
78 LS1 TA build Thought I’d post a “how my car came to be”post..
I bought my car mostly done..from a guy in NJ (BanditDave)…he built the car and wanted to go in another direction…so he listed it and I looked at it and bought it. The beginning is from the previous owner..
April 2010
The car is a ’78 Trans Am I got from Arizona by way of Illinois. It is loaded with pretty much all of Pro-Touring F-body’s catalog – 4th Gen rate springs, Huge Sway bars front and rear, lowered approximately 3 inches in the front, 2.5 rear. GM 600 box to improve steering. DSE upper and lower control arms. 10 bolt disc brake rear beefed up with welded tubes, 30 splines, 3.73 precision gears with Eaton posi. 1LE upgrade to the front with Impala SS spindles as well as Impala SS calipers, 12 inch rotors. DSE booster/Master cylinder (3rd Gen S-10 Master Cylinder subbed in to work with brake combo. DSE Master (which is actually a 5th gen S-10 Master) is also included.
Power Train is a ’99 LS1 with a reman 4L60e from a Camaro…long tube headers and 2.5” Magnaflow exhaust. Reprogrammed computer by Speartech. I rewired the stock hardness to work with the original engine harness. Wired dual fans to work as factory fans would…these do work as well. Driveshaft properly shortened to work with engine relocation – set back 1.25 inches to fit the headers. Aluminum radiator.
Fuel pump is a Bosch 044 hooked to the stock tank through an Aeromotive pre-filter and regulates through Corvette regulator. A single line runs to the fuel rail.
Torque Thrust II wheels 17x8 fronts and 17x9.5 rears with Kumho Ecstas 255/45-17 fronts and 285/40-17 rears…sized properly to fit with no rubbing.
Paint is recently completed Jetstream Blue Metallic (Z06 color) basecoat/clear coat stripped all the way down to metal and painted properly. Burt Reynolds Edition Trans Am spoilers fitted to the car all the way around. The interior still needs to be finished and gauges need to be fitted – FULL assortment of Autometer Cobalt Gauges. B&M Megashifter.
Ok what I consider the bad. Car is not done yet…it does and can drive. Still needs some wiring work to be completed. The damn steering column needs the three screws tightened…it is wobbly. It is an easy fix…haven’t gotten around to it. The exhaust could possibly be tucked up higher than it is…it is ok to drive as is, while there hasn’t been an issue yet with driving it, I feel like I could get it even tighter to the body if I had a freakin’ lift.. The oil pan, while hasn’t hit anything yet, should eventually be changed back to the Fbody pan or the LSX conversion pan Retro LSX is selling. It hangs a little below the crossmember and it really bothers me that a company, which will go nameless, would recommend this part without checking this…and it upsets me even more that I wouldn’t notice this until I took it to get painted. Interior needs to be finished. I have a lot of the parts, but not all.
Here’s a pic fresh out of the paint booth…
May 30, 2010- I bought the car and began finishing up the interior. I modded the 4th gen seats to fit, new carpet, modded the YearOne dash bezel to fit OEM wiper and headlight switch, new headliner, seat belts (4th gen fbody), and misc wiring. I was able to get the car ready to drive by July 2010. Car was a blast! It was tough to put it up for the winter…
Year One dash bezel-wiper, headlight, and turn signals cut. I also used an extra dash to mark and drill holes so I could mount the dash bezel to factory dash.
4th gen seats modded to fit
April 2011- Had the 4th gen seats recovered with white vinyl/leatherette, swapped out the cracked dash with a near mint black dash. Interior is a mix of black and white. I considered all white…but I thought the all white door panels was a bit much..Began the task of adding vintage air. I added the control switch, vents, hoses, evaporator and bulkhead. I still need to add condenser, dryer and high pressure hoses.
Test fit old dash over evaporator
Vintage air control switch and vents
Vintage air bulkhead
Front seats covered- I went with a 2 tone black and white. Carpet, dash, console (minus lid), and top of the doors down is black….above top of door line is all white
April 2012-Big task here…oil pan swap. I swapped out the LH8 pan with a modded F-body pan. It had to be modded to clear the crossmember. I also had the interior doors re-done, rear seats recovered, added PONTIAC valve covers, LED tails, Amber DRLs (turn signals), 2006 GTO third brake light and relocated the coilpacks. Sadly, GM performance parts doesn’t sell the LS Pontiac valve covers.
Not my pan..but this is just like it. Street and Performance did it.
Door skins redone- not crazy about them… I may do the year one doors in the future. Added polk 6.5 separates in the door.
Rear seats covered in matching vinyl, GTO third brake light, 2 kicker 8” free airs
Coil packs relocated to firewall, Pontiac valve covers (which they don’t sell anymore?)
LED tails and better view of GTO 3rd brake light
April 2013- I have a modded recess fuel tank…ready to accept a 4th gen fuel bucket. The tank in there works well…but it is noisy. I am adding some tunes this year, and I don’t want that annoying sound droning out my tunes! I have 2 kicker 8” free airs in the rear, polk 6.5” separates in the front. I have it set up for amps and crossovers…all run by a kenwood media player head unit. No CD’s..just ipod, iphone, or thumb drive. I plan on tucking up the exhaust too.
New tank ready to go in, fabbed up with vetteworks 4th gen fuel bucket setup.
Credit is due to Dave T-banditdave- great guy…glad I came across the opportunity to purchase his project…
More to come…
Leon Reed
I bought my car mostly done..from a guy in NJ (BanditDave)…he built the car and wanted to go in another direction…so he listed it and I looked at it and bought it. The beginning is from the previous owner..
April 2010
The car is a ’78 Trans Am I got from Arizona by way of Illinois. It is loaded with pretty much all of Pro-Touring F-body’s catalog – 4th Gen rate springs, Huge Sway bars front and rear, lowered approximately 3 inches in the front, 2.5 rear. GM 600 box to improve steering. DSE upper and lower control arms. 10 bolt disc brake rear beefed up with welded tubes, 30 splines, 3.73 precision gears with Eaton posi. 1LE upgrade to the front with Impala SS spindles as well as Impala SS calipers, 12 inch rotors. DSE booster/Master cylinder (3rd Gen S-10 Master Cylinder subbed in to work with brake combo. DSE Master (which is actually a 5th gen S-10 Master) is also included.
Power Train is a ’99 LS1 with a reman 4L60e from a Camaro…long tube headers and 2.5” Magnaflow exhaust. Reprogrammed computer by Speartech. I rewired the stock hardness to work with the original engine harness. Wired dual fans to work as factory fans would…these do work as well. Driveshaft properly shortened to work with engine relocation – set back 1.25 inches to fit the headers. Aluminum radiator.
Fuel pump is a Bosch 044 hooked to the stock tank through an Aeromotive pre-filter and regulates through Corvette regulator. A single line runs to the fuel rail.
Torque Thrust II wheels 17x8 fronts and 17x9.5 rears with Kumho Ecstas 255/45-17 fronts and 285/40-17 rears…sized properly to fit with no rubbing.
Paint is recently completed Jetstream Blue Metallic (Z06 color) basecoat/clear coat stripped all the way down to metal and painted properly. Burt Reynolds Edition Trans Am spoilers fitted to the car all the way around. The interior still needs to be finished and gauges need to be fitted – FULL assortment of Autometer Cobalt Gauges. B&M Megashifter.
Ok what I consider the bad. Car is not done yet…it does and can drive. Still needs some wiring work to be completed. The damn steering column needs the three screws tightened…it is wobbly. It is an easy fix…haven’t gotten around to it. The exhaust could possibly be tucked up higher than it is…it is ok to drive as is, while there hasn’t been an issue yet with driving it, I feel like I could get it even tighter to the body if I had a freakin’ lift.. The oil pan, while hasn’t hit anything yet, should eventually be changed back to the Fbody pan or the LSX conversion pan Retro LSX is selling. It hangs a little below the crossmember and it really bothers me that a company, which will go nameless, would recommend this part without checking this…and it upsets me even more that I wouldn’t notice this until I took it to get painted. Interior needs to be finished. I have a lot of the parts, but not all.
Here’s a pic fresh out of the paint booth…
May 30, 2010- I bought the car and began finishing up the interior. I modded the 4th gen seats to fit, new carpet, modded the YearOne dash bezel to fit OEM wiper and headlight switch, new headliner, seat belts (4th gen fbody), and misc wiring. I was able to get the car ready to drive by July 2010. Car was a blast! It was tough to put it up for the winter…
Year One dash bezel-wiper, headlight, and turn signals cut. I also used an extra dash to mark and drill holes so I could mount the dash bezel to factory dash.
4th gen seats modded to fit
April 2011- Had the 4th gen seats recovered with white vinyl/leatherette, swapped out the cracked dash with a near mint black dash. Interior is a mix of black and white. I considered all white…but I thought the all white door panels was a bit much..Began the task of adding vintage air. I added the control switch, vents, hoses, evaporator and bulkhead. I still need to add condenser, dryer and high pressure hoses.
Test fit old dash over evaporator
Vintage air control switch and vents
Vintage air bulkhead
Front seats covered- I went with a 2 tone black and white. Carpet, dash, console (minus lid), and top of the doors down is black….above top of door line is all white
April 2012-Big task here…oil pan swap. I swapped out the LH8 pan with a modded F-body pan. It had to be modded to clear the crossmember. I also had the interior doors re-done, rear seats recovered, added PONTIAC valve covers, LED tails, Amber DRLs (turn signals), 2006 GTO third brake light and relocated the coilpacks. Sadly, GM performance parts doesn’t sell the LS Pontiac valve covers.
Not my pan..but this is just like it. Street and Performance did it.
Door skins redone- not crazy about them… I may do the year one doors in the future. Added polk 6.5 separates in the door.
Rear seats covered in matching vinyl, GTO third brake light, 2 kicker 8” free airs
Coil packs relocated to firewall, Pontiac valve covers (which they don’t sell anymore?)
LED tails and better view of GTO 3rd brake light
April 2013- I have a modded recess fuel tank…ready to accept a 4th gen fuel bucket. The tank in there works well…but it is noisy. I am adding some tunes this year, and I don’t want that annoying sound droning out my tunes! I have 2 kicker 8” free airs in the rear, polk 6.5” separates in the front. I have it set up for amps and crossovers…all run by a kenwood media player head unit. No CD’s..just ipod, iphone, or thumb drive. I plan on tucking up the exhaust too.
New tank ready to go in, fabbed up with vetteworks 4th gen fuel bucket setup.
Credit is due to Dave T-banditdave- great guy…glad I came across the opportunity to purchase his project…
More to come…
Leon Reed
Last edited by reedld; 11-21-2013 at 06:23 PM. Reason: More pics/edit info
04-24-2013 | 09:32 AM
#3
Teching In
Joined: Nov 2012
Posts: 34
Likes: 0
Thought I’d post a “how my car came to be”post..
I bought my car mostly done..from a guy in NJ…he built the car and wanted to go in another direction…so he listed it and I looked at it and bought it. The beginning is from the previous owner..
April 2010
I have been giving this a lot of thought lately and I have been working on this project a few years now – almost 4 to be exact – and I have been noticing something about myself that I just seem to enjoy building them and since I have had many 2nd Gen TAs over the past few years I am kind of looking for something different.
While I have been having issues with a former engine builder since 2004, I have kind of taken myself out of drag racing, but after recently acquiring a ’69 Cutlass I have been getting really into the FAST series of racing.
I am gauging interest in possibly selling my ’78 pro-touring TA to focus on the Cutlass. This thing has a LOT of stuff on it so I apologize if I forget some of the things on this car but here it goes:
The car is a ’78 Trans Am I got from Arizona by way of Illinois. It is loaded with pretty much all of Pro-Touring F-body’s catalog – 4th Gen rate springs, Huge Sway bars front and rear, lowered approximately 3 inches in the front, 2.5 rear. GM 600 box to improve steering. DSE upper and lower control arms. 10 bolt disc brake rear beefed up with welded tubes, 30 splines, 3.73 precision gears with Eaton posi. 1LE upgrade to the front with Impala SS spindles as well as Impala SS calipers, 12 inch rotors. DSE booster/Master cylinder (3rd Gen S-10 Master Cylinder subbed in to work with brake combo. DSE Master (which is actually a 5th gen S-10 Master) is also included.
Power Train is a ’99 LS1 with a reman 4L60e from a Camaro…long tube headers and 2.5” Magnaflow exhaust. Reprogrammed computer by Speartech. I rewired the stock hardness to work with the original engine harness. Wired dual fans to work as factory fans would…these do work as well. Driveshaft properly shortened to work with engine relocation – set back 1.25 inches to fit the headers. Aluminum radiator.
Fuel pump is a Bosch 044 hooked to the stock tank through an Aeromotive pre-filter and regulates through Corvette regulator. A single line runs to the fuel rail.
Torque Thrust II wheels 17x8 fronts and 17x9.5 rears with Kumho Ecstas 255/45-17 fronts and 285/40-17 rears…sized properly to fit with no rubbing.
Paint is recently completed Jetstream Blue Metallic (Z06 color) basecoat/clear coat stripped all the way down to metal and painted properly. Burt Reynolds Edition Trans Am spoilers fitted to the car all the way around. The interior still needs to be finished and gauges need to be fitted – FULL assortment of Autometer Cobalt Gauges. B&M Megashifter.
Ok what I consider the bad. Car is not done yet…it does and can drive. Still needs some wiring work to be completed. The damn steering column needs the three screws tightened…it is wobbly. It is an easy fix…haven’t gotten around to it. The exhaust could possibly be tucked up higher than it is…it is ok to drive as is, while there hasn’t been an issue yet with driving it, I feel like I could get it even tighter to the body if I had a freakin’ lift.. The oil pan, while hasn’t hit anything yet, should eventually be changed back to the Fbody pan or the LSX conversion pan Retro LSX is selling. It hangs a little below the crossmember and it really bothers me that a company, which will go nameless, would recommend this part without checking this…and it upsets me even more that I wouldn’t notice this until I took it to get painted. Interior needs to be finished. I have a lot of the parts, but not all.
Here’s a pic fresh out of the paint booth…
May 30, 2010- I bought the car and began finishing up the interior. I modded the 4th gen seats to fit, new carpet, modded the YearOne dash bezel to fit OEM wiper and headlight switch, new headliner, seat belts (4th gen fbody), and misc wiring. I was able to get the car ready to drive by July 2010. Car was a blast! It was tough to put it up for the winter…
April 2011- Had the 4th gen seats recovered with white vinyl/leatherette, swapped out a near mint black dash (Arizona dash was shot!). Interior is a mix of black and white. I considered all white…but I thought the all white door panels was a bit much..Began the task of adding vintage air. I added the control switch, vents, hoses, evaporator and bulkhead.
April 2012-Big task here…oil pan swap. I swapped out the LH8 pan with a modded F-body pan. It had to be modded to clear the crossmember. I also had the interior doors re-done, rear seats recovered, added PONTIAC valve covers, LED tails, Amber DRLs (turn signals), 2006 GTO third brake light and relocated the coilpacks.
April 2013- I have a modded recess fuel tank…ready to accept a 4th gen fuel bucket. The tank in there works well…but it is noisy. I am adding some tunes this year, and I don’t want that annoying sound droning out my tunes! I have 2 kicker 8” free airs in the rear, polk 6.5” separates in the front. I have it set up for amps and crossovers…all run by a kenwood media player head unit. No CD’s..just ipod, iphone, or thumb drive. I plan on tucking up the exhaust too.
Present tank
New one ready to go in, fabbed up with vetteworks 4th gen fuel bucket setup…..needs paint yet.
Credit is due to Dave T-banditdave- great guy…glad I came across the opportunity to purchase his project…
More to come…
I bought my car mostly done..from a guy in NJ…he built the car and wanted to go in another direction…so he listed it and I looked at it and bought it. The beginning is from the previous owner..
April 2010
I have been giving this a lot of thought lately and I have been working on this project a few years now – almost 4 to be exact – and I have been noticing something about myself that I just seem to enjoy building them and since I have had many 2nd Gen TAs over the past few years I am kind of looking for something different.
While I have been having issues with a former engine builder since 2004, I have kind of taken myself out of drag racing, but after recently acquiring a ’69 Cutlass I have been getting really into the FAST series of racing.
I am gauging interest in possibly selling my ’78 pro-touring TA to focus on the Cutlass. This thing has a LOT of stuff on it so I apologize if I forget some of the things on this car but here it goes:
The car is a ’78 Trans Am I got from Arizona by way of Illinois. It is loaded with pretty much all of Pro-Touring F-body’s catalog – 4th Gen rate springs, Huge Sway bars front and rear, lowered approximately 3 inches in the front, 2.5 rear. GM 600 box to improve steering. DSE upper and lower control arms. 10 bolt disc brake rear beefed up with welded tubes, 30 splines, 3.73 precision gears with Eaton posi. 1LE upgrade to the front with Impala SS spindles as well as Impala SS calipers, 12 inch rotors. DSE booster/Master cylinder (3rd Gen S-10 Master Cylinder subbed in to work with brake combo. DSE Master (which is actually a 5th gen S-10 Master) is also included.
Power Train is a ’99 LS1 with a reman 4L60e from a Camaro…long tube headers and 2.5” Magnaflow exhaust. Reprogrammed computer by Speartech. I rewired the stock hardness to work with the original engine harness. Wired dual fans to work as factory fans would…these do work as well. Driveshaft properly shortened to work with engine relocation – set back 1.25 inches to fit the headers. Aluminum radiator.
Fuel pump is a Bosch 044 hooked to the stock tank through an Aeromotive pre-filter and regulates through Corvette regulator. A single line runs to the fuel rail.
Torque Thrust II wheels 17x8 fronts and 17x9.5 rears with Kumho Ecstas 255/45-17 fronts and 285/40-17 rears…sized properly to fit with no rubbing.
Paint is recently completed Jetstream Blue Metallic (Z06 color) basecoat/clear coat stripped all the way down to metal and painted properly. Burt Reynolds Edition Trans Am spoilers fitted to the car all the way around. The interior still needs to be finished and gauges need to be fitted – FULL assortment of Autometer Cobalt Gauges. B&M Megashifter.
Ok what I consider the bad. Car is not done yet…it does and can drive. Still needs some wiring work to be completed. The damn steering column needs the three screws tightened…it is wobbly. It is an easy fix…haven’t gotten around to it. The exhaust could possibly be tucked up higher than it is…it is ok to drive as is, while there hasn’t been an issue yet with driving it, I feel like I could get it even tighter to the body if I had a freakin’ lift.. The oil pan, while hasn’t hit anything yet, should eventually be changed back to the Fbody pan or the LSX conversion pan Retro LSX is selling. It hangs a little below the crossmember and it really bothers me that a company, which will go nameless, would recommend this part without checking this…and it upsets me even more that I wouldn’t notice this until I took it to get painted. Interior needs to be finished. I have a lot of the parts, but not all.
Here’s a pic fresh out of the paint booth…
May 30, 2010- I bought the car and began finishing up the interior. I modded the 4th gen seats to fit, new carpet, modded the YearOne dash bezel to fit OEM wiper and headlight switch, new headliner, seat belts (4th gen fbody), and misc wiring. I was able to get the car ready to drive by July 2010. Car was a blast! It was tough to put it up for the winter…
April 2011- Had the 4th gen seats recovered with white vinyl/leatherette, swapped out a near mint black dash (Arizona dash was shot!). Interior is a mix of black and white. I considered all white…but I thought the all white door panels was a bit much..Began the task of adding vintage air. I added the control switch, vents, hoses, evaporator and bulkhead.
April 2012-Big task here…oil pan swap. I swapped out the LH8 pan with a modded F-body pan. It had to be modded to clear the crossmember. I also had the interior doors re-done, rear seats recovered, added PONTIAC valve covers, LED tails, Amber DRLs (turn signals), 2006 GTO third brake light and relocated the coilpacks.
April 2013- I have a modded recess fuel tank…ready to accept a 4th gen fuel bucket. The tank in there works well…but it is noisy. I am adding some tunes this year, and I don’t want that annoying sound droning out my tunes! I have 2 kicker 8” free airs in the rear, polk 6.5” separates in the front. I have it set up for amps and crossovers…all run by a kenwood media player head unit. No CD’s..just ipod, iphone, or thumb drive. I plan on tucking up the exhaust too.
Present tank
New one ready to go in, fabbed up with vetteworks 4th gen fuel bucket setup…..needs paint yet.
Credit is due to Dave T-banditdave- great guy…glad I came across the opportunity to purchase his project…
More to come…
Wow! You are doing such a great job. What a beauty.
Safe travels my friend.
Jennifer T,
GM Customer Care Service
05-15-2013 | 12:54 AM
#4
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,343
Likes: 2
From: South of Augusta,GA
Can you give more onfo on the tank upgrade? Like where you got the pump asembly from. I installed 2 pumps in my tank, without cutting it, but after going in there 3 times I need to make it a better way to get ate the pumps.
05-15-2013 | 07:10 AM
#5
The pump is from a 2000 LS1 fbody, picked it up on eBay from fparts ( huge seller in the Philly area). I am using the vette works kit. I disassembled the housing and replaced the OEM pump for peace of mind. I recessed the pump/fuel module only so I did not have to cut the trunk....and I started with a new tank. My present tank works well...it's just loud! I have not found the time to complete the tank swap just yet..hopefully within a week I will be done. Hope this helps..
Leon
http://vetteworksonline.net/ (Under c3 conversion section)
Leon
http://vetteworksonline.net/ (Under c3 conversion section)
Trending Topics
05-15-2013 | 07:01 PM
#11
05-16-2013 | 11:35 AM
#14
05-16-2013 | 12:18 PM
#15
I may still have a low hanging fruit pic laying around....been a while though. Miss that car, but Reed has done a phenomenal job finishing it off! Couldn't have gone to a better guy.
05-16-2013 | 12:22 PM
#16
Give Bob @ Brutespeed a call and get the Kook's headers. These were not available when I originally built the car. Had they been, I would have spent a little more and got them. FANTASTIC quality, but a little more expensive. Stainless as well. I believe Stainless Works may also offer headers but I am not as sure.
I may still have a low hanging fruit pic laying around....been a while though. Miss that car, but Reed has done a phenomenal job finishing it off! Couldn't have gone to a better guy.
I may still have a low hanging fruit pic laying around....been a while though. Miss that car, but Reed has done a phenomenal job finishing it off! Couldn't have gone to a better guy.
the people..the cars...This place is just fantastic
05-16-2013 | 12:59 PM
#17
Redline- I'll snap a pic and PM ya. It's up on jackstands right now. I am working on the car audio right at the moment, as well as just finished adding on the autometer LED dimming circuit. Those cobalt guages are awesome...but if I ever drive near dusk and need my lights...MAN are they bright! LED dimmer circuit works great! I wont have the car down until I have my fuel system complete. I have a new 2nd gen tank cut, recessed, sealed and ready to go in (using 4th gen pump).
Dave- Thanks for stepping in and helping! Hope all is well....congrats on upcoming birth! I lurk at your cutlass build from time to time...take care..
Leon
Dave- Thanks for stepping in and helping! Hope all is well....congrats on upcoming birth! I lurk at your cutlass build from time to time...take care..
Leon
05-16-2013 | 04:02 PM
#18
Redline- I'll snap a pic and PM ya. It's up on jackstands right now. I am working on the car audio right at the moment, as well as just finished adding on the autometer LED dimming circuit. Those cobalt guages are awesome...but if I ever drive near dusk and need my lights...MAN are they bright! LED dimmer circuit works great! I wont have the car down until I have my fuel system complete. I have a new 2nd gen tank cut, recessed, sealed and ready to go in (using 4th gen pump).
Leon
Leon
05-16-2013 | 06:06 PM
#19
Redline- I'll snap a pic and PM ya. It's up on jackstands right now. I am working on the car audio right at the moment, as well as just finished adding on the autometer LED dimming circuit. Those cobalt guages are awesome...but if I ever drive near dusk and need my lights...MAN are they bright! LED dimmer circuit works great! I wont have the car down until I have my fuel system complete. I have a new 2nd gen tank cut, recessed, sealed and ready to go in (using 4th gen pump).
Dave- Thanks for stepping in and helping! Hope all is well....congrats on upcoming birth! I lurk at your cutlass build from time to time...take care..
Leon
Dave- Thanks for stepping in and helping! Hope all is well....congrats on upcoming birth! I lurk at your cutlass build from time to time...take care..
Leon
You need to take some updated pics of that thing and a video and post it! I will help if you have difficulty with the video posting. You have done a superb job with the second half of the build...I did the easy stuff...I HATE interior work and you have taken it the extra mile. Like I said before...when I called you Reed...lol...long day...couldn't have gone to a better owner.
Take care and get some more vids and pics up!
Dave
